The Jade Belt River was surging.
Ai Lan stood on the bank of the river, with figures looming at the bottom of the water.
Elara stood not far from her with her hands behind her back.
The Heroic Soul Archer was right behind her, and a group of guards was keeping watch over the river.
"Make a note for me. From now on, I will patrol the Yudai River every day."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Elara turned to Xiao Mifal on her shoulder and spoke as Cefalp prepared to write it down.
Last time, people from the Shui Tribe had been lurking in the Yudai River, and then they had to rush to the Holy Spirit Alliance to deal with the invasion.
Elara had never had time to arrange any protective measures for the Yudai River.
Today, Ai Lan had arrived via the Yudai River again, completely undetected by any lord along the way.
This served as a clear reminder that she truly needed to strengthen the supervision of the Yudai River.
This action was not hidden from Ai Lan, being obviously intended for the other party to notice.
"Oh, do not worry; after today, I will not come here again."
"I am here on behalf of the Holy Spirit Alliance and wish to establish trade relations with you."
"I know you possess the mineral resources and ores from the Eastern District, and we need them as well."
Elara’s beautiful eyebrows raised slightly.
She remembered what Toji Hisami had told her before.
When Elara established a trade network with the lords of the Southern District, the Holy Spirit Alliance would definitely be unable to sit still.
When one side was replenished, the other side would be weakened.
The Holy Spirit Alliance could not allow such a situation to occur, so they would definitely contact Elara.
Toji Hisami had instructed Elara to accept everyone who came and not to raise prices unfairly.
When he had said it, Elara still had not fully believed it.
Given the strained relationship between the Holy Spirit Alliance and herself, as long as Musa remained in power, it seemed impossible for him to allow the Holy Spirit Alliance to trade with her.
For Musa, who desperately wanted to appear strong, this would undoubtedly be a disguised display of weakness.
Yet now the Holy Spirit Alliance had actually come, and it was the deputy leader Ai Lan who had arrived in person.
She could finalize tonight’s agreement with a single word.
"Does Musa agree to what you are doing?"
"Musa has already gone to the foggy area, preparing to travel through it to the West District."
Hearing Elara’s question, Ai Lan hid nothing and directly revealed Musa’s whereabouts to Elara.
This time, Elara was genuinely surprised.
In an instant, she figured out why Musa had done this.
He wanted to follow Toji Hisami’s example by traversing the fog zone to develop in the West District, while simultaneously joining forces with Sardo in the West District in advance.
Currently, all the geniuses were suppressed by Toji Hisami, with no clear path to overtake him.
If they wanted to overturn the towering mountain that was Toji Hisami, they had to unite.
Knowing Musa’s pride, once he saw that Toji Hisami could navigate the fog zone, he would definitely attempt it himself.
If he truly succeeded, then the Southern District would establish contact with the West District.
At that point, this region would not merely be the back garden of Heavenly Drive, but a shared domain between the Heavenly Drive Alliance and the Golden Alliance.
Although saying this was somewhat contemptuous of the lords’ power in the Southern District, it was indeed the reality.
Musa was a powerhouse in the Southern District and the leader of the Holy Spirit Alliance, standing on the same level as Sardo.
They could negotiate cooperation, whereas others lacked the qualification to do so.
However, cooperation could also be divided into equal partnerships and subordinate arrangements; it was likely that the status of the Golden Alliance would be higher by then.
Yet since Ai Lan had stated this, she must have tacitly accepted the unfolding situation.
This outcome could also be credited in large part to Toji Hisami.
Toji Hisami had placed far too much pressure on the Holy Spirit Alliance!
"I know that Musa’s opportunity lies in the foggy area, and he will go into the fog to search for his own opportunities this time."
"Just like you, Elara, you also possess the secret of opportunity passed down from your ancestors. Which among us geniuses does not?"
"Once Musa successfully secures his opportunity, his strength will definitely undergo a dramatic change."
Ai Lan was unsure whether she was cheering herself up or using Musa to remind Elara not to demand an exorbitant price later.
What she said was indeed correct; while she knew nothing about ordinary lords, her return to the Holy Territory was guided by heritage.
Almost every lord of the Holy Territory received reminders from their ancestors regarding the existence of opportunities after entering the trial world.
Entering the Palace of Knowledge or unlocking the Romance of the Sea were among those secrets.
This was also one of the reasons why the Human Alliance had gradually transformed into the Family Alliance over a long period.
Yet when she mentioned that every talented person possessed one or two opportunities, she could not help but think of Toji Hisami.
Logically speaking, Toji Hisami came from a commoner background, so it should have been completely impossible for him to know where these opportunities lay.
Judging from Toji Hisami’s current development momentum, however, Ai Lan was one hundred percent certain that Toji Hisami must have encountered an opportunity.
This realization made her sigh; sometimes, when encountering a child of destiny, there was truly nothing one could do.
If Toji Hisami were present and knew Ai Lan’s thoughts, he would probably sneer at her assumptions.
He had learned of the Palace of Knowledge because he possessed the keen observation to notice details that most people ignored.
That was how he had managed to discover the dusty diary of the first dean in the academy’s library.
It was precisely because he entered the Palace of Knowledge that he obtained another crucial key to his own destiny.
Consequently, after understanding the power of knowledge, he uncovered the existence of opportunities upon the ocean, enabling him to break through dimensions and embark on the maritime adventure.
Even so, as a newcomer to Moana who did not fully understand the realm, he had initially been forced to rely on the basic whiteboard sailor assigned by Moana.
Had he not executed everything flawlessly and possessed extraordinary talent, it would have been impossible to secure such immense benefits afterward.
Naturally, it was also due to his exceptional performance that he caught the attention of Elara, who was seeking an alliance.
Had Toji Hisami made a single misstep during that period, Ai Lan would not even be seeing him standing here today.
He would still be training diligently in obscurity somewhere.
God rewards those who work hard; yet to grow so rapidly in such a short timeframe, these opportunities were undeniably essential for him.
If he truly had to trade time for strength, he would certainly gain results eventually, but he would never have stood among the very top from the outset.
The intricate effort involved was something Ai Lan casually dismissed by simply calling him a "child of destiny."
Elara had no intention of refuting Ai Lan’s words, letting her think whatever she pleased.
Because of her background, Elara had held two opportunities, yet the primary beneficiary had been Toji Hisami.
By her guess, Ai Lan might have mastered one, using it as the foundation for her ambition.
She simply had not expected that Musa had yet to find his opportunity.
No wonder Musa remained unconvinced.
This time, he was undoubtedly preparing to seize the opportunity within the fog and then unite with Sardo in the strongest possible posture.
"Very well; as for Musa, it does not matter what you write to me about."
"You wish to establish trade relations with Heavenly Drive on behalf of the Holy Spirit Alliance, and I agree."
"We will not mark up prices for you; you will stand on an equal footing with the other lords in the Southern District. You need not doubt this."
Although her previous statement had been ignored by Elara, Ai Lan breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Elara agree with her own ears.
If they did not establish trade ties with Heavenly Drive as soon as possible, the other lords would be the first to recover.
Once those lords were fully equipped with sufficient weaponry, they would definitely launch tentative attacks against the Holy Spirit Alliance.
Not all members of the Holy Spirit Alliance were exceptionally wealthy, and there were limits to how much others could subsidize them.
After all, everyone needed to develop their own territories.
Therefore, trade remained their only viable option.
Until Musa successfully established contact with the West District, they had to endure this arrangement to escape their current predicament.
This feeling of being held in someone else’s palm made Ai Lan extremely uncomfortable.
Yet this was the precise situation Toji Hisami had planned and promoted step by step upon arriving in the Southern District.
How could she resolve it with mere discomfort?
After the two confirmed their business relationship and signed the contract on the spot, Elara made a gesture of farewell to Ai Lan.
This area belonged to the Hetao Plain, and the Hetao Plain was now regarded by Elara as her own domain.
She did not welcome Ai Lan’s presence.
Ai Lan let out a cold snort, stepped into the river, and allowed the water to submerge her.
After a trail of bubbles surfaced, Ai Lan and her entourage vanished into the Yudai River, evidently traveling downstream to depart.
"First, arrange for people to construct enough arrow towers along both banks of the river. If you spot anything strange in the future, shoot her first!"
After venting her annoyance, Elara also returned to her territory.
At this point, the entire Southern District had fallen completely under their control.